Process of smelting ores.



UNITED STATES A JOEFICE HENRY A DEN, or nos ANGELns, .oALI'FonNrA.

' PROCESS oFTsME'L rm-G ORES Q Application filed January To all whom it may concern:

"Be ,it known that I, l-lnN nY Annnx, citizen'of the United. States, residing at Los, Angcics, in the county of -Los Angeles and State oi llalilornia, have invented'certain"iiewvand'juseiul Iniprov enrents in Processes of Smelling Ores, oi which tire following is a specification. This invention is a process of sinelt'ing'pres and effectv.mg reactions by the agencyoi a limited gas or gases con- 1 stitut'ing one of lhcireacting bodies and .usually ployed in conjunction with a larger or. smaller propor: tionoi fined carbon. Theterin ore? -isfus ed herein in itsbroadest sense, as including concentrates. inattesfan d ,other metallurgical products or sources ofrhetal;

examples thereof, it beingunderstood thatItlie inven-- tion is but limited to the treatment of the particular 11 will describe the invention by reference-to specific.

, oresmentioncd by way of example, nor tothe specific conditions statedf- For the. reductionoi iron ores I inay' proceed as follows: A-hematite o'r'other iron ore, usually mixed with a suitable fiux'and with a relatively small proportion of fixed carbon, is charged into a furnace similar in design to an ordinary blast furnace, but preferably provided with two twyers or sets of ,tivyers'at different levels, the j lower set located as usual'at the level ofthc crucible and' v tlierippor set at alpprmiimately the furnace above the crucible r -l'may inr orpoiate'with the charge a relatively small proportion of fixed carbon, .the preferred proportioir being eul'licient to provide the metalwith the three or" i v 4 I. four percentof carbon necessary for its convers on into cast iron orlpig, together with such excess as may' be 1?e quired to effect the reduction of any '0 d'which may escape reduction by the gaseous reducing agent or agents hereinafter referred to; and to compensate for any loss of carbon by'bxidation in the upper portion of the furnace.

j'lhrough tlieupper twyors Igintroduce carbon mo noxid proviouslyheatod :to, a suitable degree, thepur-- pose olsuch introduction being'w preli'oatjthe' ore or charge, and in-case'the teliipcraturdoi the gas is sufiic'ient, to effect a partial rcductigni oi the ore. With the heated carbon monorid 1 lnay'introduce a hydrocarbon,

-ad(lition being to iacilitatethe absorpiionby the ironcient to permit some reduction oi the ore by carbon 13s; a heavy petroleum, preferably previously vaporizedandcomminglcd with'the gas,.th'e chiei purpose ol' such of the carbon required or-making pig, and tho nrclting oi the metal.' The hydrocarbon is usually admittedthroughthe uppertvryers 'only when the temperature of the charge in the upper portion of the furnace is'sullimonoxid.

Through: the lowertwyers, located at the reducing -zone, Iadm-it carbon monoxid, with or without the-addition oi heayy hydrocarbon I vapor {as above described, the carbon nonoxid being superheated to such Specification ofLettersPatentf one-third the beight'of.

Patented 9 5.22, 1907. 9,1901, Serial M51534.

3 high temperature-as to establish reacting conditions in the charge and to effect'the reduction oi the (mid; "The effect of the hydrocarbon'vapor is to facilitate the p'ro temperature necessary .forthe reduction is in practice attained by causing the carbon Inono xid to traverse an proportion of the latter gasis substantially inactive as carbon dioxid should beelimiuuted; and this maybe accomplished by passing. the/gas, prior to its inlroduction through-the upper twyers, over, ignited carbonl In practice the (ra1-bo11 .nionoxid is proicrably' produced bythe combustion of pctroleuin its hoavior suitable'type, the 'prop n-tion of air being rcgulatcd as "nearly as practicable to yield carbo'n inonoxid only, together Withsuch vapor of Water as may be derived from the oxidation'of ihe hydrogen present.

In-Ipractic'e a certain proportion of carbon dioirid is 'nceessaril y' present, to reduce which, asivnll as tho. water vapon thegas is passed througha'bodv of carbon in a closed receptacle or .i'urnacc, the Q electric circuit as a rcsister. -'l-hc manner innhioh the hydrocarbon isvaporizcd is not material to my invention,- the. desired being to subject the orolo the combined reducing action oi carbon mon'oxid and a hysuperheat-ing the carbonnionmiid or the highly heated 'c arb011 1nonoiid may be utilized i'or spraying the hydro an independent furnace, preferably of tho electric rosistancc typc, and to convcy tbe vapors through the superheater above described and'thonco into the smelting furnace. The'quantity of hydrocarbon vaporized may be. easily regulated by a suitable automatic food.

a condition in which it will not be readily oxidized during its passage from the upper portion of the burrow to the reducing zone, while at tlio'highci tomperaturo bon Inonoxid and carbon-diorid containing. a certain ,drocarbon. Thus, the hydrocarbon may be vaporizcd in .the electic furnace above described as employed for of the reducingzone it will be in condition to combine duction of pig metal as above desc'ribcd. 'l The high electric furnace adjacent the smelting furnace, the

.regardsreduction even though moving slowl y through a body of heated ore. Accordinglyiit is dcsirablothat lractionsfor other hydrocarbon in a closed furnace of fixed carbon-iii bon being maintained at a suitable tenipcratureby, inclusion inan In certain cases it is advisable to supply the carbon in carbonor ior conveyingits-vapors into contact with the ore. I prefer however to vaporize tho li \'(lll)(trl)ul1 in ,sodium silicate,

5 r scopes,

. with the iron and to complete the reduction of the iron ox'id' as above described. This result may be accoml phshed, for instance, by providing the carbon with a I pro ive layer of a suitable material. I prefer to use I which is presumably dissociated at- I moderate temperatures in the upper regions of the fun i nace, the sodium 'oxid vaporizing and the silica coating the carbon in such n anner as to effectively prevent its oxidation until the reduction zone is reached, or until such temperature is attained that the silica is-inc0rporai-ml into a slag; in such case it is advisable to'conr stru ct a slag having a comparatively high heat of iorniation, in order to retain the protective covering until the Zone of rcduction is reached and until the reduction of l the iron has been accomplished. The carbon may be supplied as coke, coal or other form of lixed' carbon dipped or otherwise coated with sodium silicate; or d ust coke or coal, peat, sawdust or the like: may be ag- I glouierated into briqucts with sodium silicate as a binder. In case the lixcd carbon is so protected from l oxidation it is not essential in practice that the carbon inonoxid bei'recd from carlmn dioxid or other oxidizing zul'inixturc; arid if the protection be complete it is possi l ble to employ air as a heating agent, or to heat the charge by introducing through the upper twycrs a combustible )l l l l l l l l mixture of air and hydrocarbon or the like. The chief advantages of this process of reduction are its applicability in all .cascs where petroleunror its products available, irrespective of the availability or expense of solid fuel; and the high purity of the prod uct, due to the absenceof any large proportion of ash or mechanical impurities derived from the red ucing agent. The process is furthermore economical and effective and is readily renderedcontinuoiis.

I claim:

1. The proc ss of. smelting ores, which consists in sube ling :1 charge to the action of a heated gas. and then r'cducing the charge by means. of a.reducin g gas heated above the temperature of its formation, substantially as described. I

2. The process of smelting iron ores, which consists in snbjectlaign charge containing an oxid ore of iron to the action of a'heated gas and then reducing lhe ,-snn1c by means or carbon monoxid heated above the temperature of its formation, 'ubstanl'ially as described. I

3.. The pro( of smelling iron ores, which consists in subjecting a charge containing an oxid ore of iron to the action of a heated gas and then reducing the some by means of superheated carbon morn 'id in presence ol a hydrocarbon vapor, substuutially s d ribed. 4. The process of smellin iron ores, \vh'ich cons s in subjectinga charge comprising an iron'ore and carbon to the action of :1 heated gas, then reducing the same by means of a gas healed above the temperature of its fornmlion, substantially as described. l The process of'srnelting iron ones, which consists in I subjecting a charge comprising :in iron orc'an'd carbon, the I l 1 I carbon belnr presentin less proportion than would be re- 'quired for reducing the ore, to the action of a healed gas,

then reducing the same by means of a superheated reducing gas, substantially QS'ilOSCl'illGd.

6. The process of smelting iron ores and producing pii,

metal; which consists in incorporating with an iron ore a [hilly as de.

, of substantially preventing oxidation of tb'e .iuutcrial in -8. The process of sinelting iron ores and producing plg' metal. which consists in incorporating with an iron ore a relatively small proportion of carbon. and reducing the ore by subjecting it to the combined action-of heated carbon nionoxid scribed.

U. The process of smelting ores, which consists in heating a .norroxidiz ing gas to a high ienu'ierature, connniir gling with the same :1 hydrocarbon vapor, and subjecting a.

charge comprising the ore and carbon to mixture, substantially asdesci-ibd.

lU. The process 01' smelting ores, which consists in heating amon xidizing gas to a high temperature, commlngling with the amp :r hydrm arbou vapor, and subjecting a charge comprising the ore and carbon to the action of the mixture. the carbon being present in less proportion than would be required for reducing ore, substantially as des cl'ilred. v

11. The process of smelting ores, which consists in providing a curlnmaceous materialwith a coating capable of substantially preventing oxidation of the curlmnaceous material in presence of the ore, incorporating it with an ore to be reduced, and reducing the ore by means of a heated gas, substantially as lies ribed.

11.. 'lhc' process of smelling ores. which cons" s in providing a carbonaceous material with a protective coating of sodium silicate. incorporating it with an ore to be reduced, and. reducing the ore byuueuus of 'a heated gas, substan- 15%. The process of smelling ores, which consists in pro riding a mrlmnuccohs material with a cry 'ng capable rbounceous presence of the orc. incorporating il. with an ore to be reduced in proportion less than would be'required for rcducing the ore. and reducing the-ore by means of a heated gas substantially as described.

'14. The process of smelling ores, which consists in no the action of the .viding :1 carbonaceous material with a protective coating,

incorporating it with an ore to be Reduced, heating the charge without destroying said protective courii and linnlly reducing the ore by means of a heated gas; substantially as desc ibed.

'lhe proce. of smelting ores and producing pig niclnl, which'consisls in providing :1 carbonaceous"material with :1 protective coating. incorporating it with an ore to be tc'ctirc coating. and finally reducing the ore by means of heated carbon inonoxld substantially as do. ribed.

16. The process of smelting ores and producing pig metal. which cm is in providing carbonziccous material with a protective coating, incorporating it'wilh an ore to be 'ednced, heating the charge without destroying said protective coating, and linallv reducing the ore by means of healed carbon inonoxid in presence of a hydrocarbon vapor,

substantially as described.

X In testimony whereof, I uilix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

and a hydrocarbon vapor, substantially as de :iluced, heating the charge without destroying said pro- 

